


Brothers in Arms

by Mija



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-05
Updated: 2016-07-05
Packaged: 2018-07-21 16:55:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7395844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mija/pseuds/Mija
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It doesn’t take Hikaru long to realize that, when looking for a friend aboard the Enterprise, Pavel Chekov isn’t a bad choice.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Brothers in Arms

The first time Pavel Chekov entered the Bridge, Hikaru’s initial thought was that this kid had only accidentally gotten an ensign’s uniform and that he’d just opened the wrong door on his way to ... well, on his way to wherever they had a use for kids like him.

Nobody could blame him for that way of thinking, really. The ensign _did_ look like a child – just about fifteen, not even old enough to start the Academy and definitely not old enough to be aboard a starship during a potentially dangerous rescue mission.

(Hikaru didn’t change his opinion about that when he found out that his new colleague was actually seventeen. Seventeen was still a too young age to carry the heavy burden of responsibility, and it was most certainly a too young age to witness the things that were about to come.)

He had no idea why Starfleet thought it was smart to permit kids like this one aboard their ships. Perhaps, he mused, they just needed people to do the dirty work, to help the cleaning staff or whatever ... He had barely finished this line of thought when the ensign crossed the Bridge to settle himself behind the navigation desk with the self-confidence of a twenty-year space veteran.

Hikaru’s eyebrows flew up.

“Hey, what are you doing here?” he asked, unable to restrain himself. _Don’t you think you’re in the wrong place, kid?_

The ensign merely shrugged. “I was assigned to this station,” he replied with a horrible Russian accent that made Hikaru cringe inwardly. Nearly four hundred crewmen aboard this ship, and he’d have to work with a Russian kid who had probably never touched the helm of a starship before ...

“Uh ... okay.”

Their first conversation ended in an embarrassing silence.

~°~

As it turned out, Pavel Chekov knew exactly how to handle the helm of a starship. It wasn’t _him_ who delayed their start by making the stupid beginner’s mistake of forgetting to disengage the external inertial dampener; but it _was_ him who managed to save both James Kirk and Hikaru by beaming them up from their free fall towards the planet’s surface just in time.

Shaking from his latest near-death experience, Hikaru stepped next to Chekov, who was still seated behind the transporter room’s control station.

“Good work, ensign,” he said, and he meant it. He’d never make the mistake to underestimate that kid again.

“It was the first time I did this in a real life situation,” Chekov said modestly. “I was lucky it worked.”

“Well, _I_ certainly was.”

They shared a smile; and then they had other problems as Spock’s mother died and Vulcan imploded and everything went to hell.

~°~

“It wasn’t your fault, you know,” Hikaru told him afterwards, when things had calmed down a bit and when the first waves of shock began to fade. They were on their way back to Earth, leaving behind so much more than a destroyed Romulan ship and six billion dead Vulcans.

Chekov just looked at him in silence, with those large bright eyes that always reminded him of a puppy.

“You did everything you could. You couldn’t have saved her, no matter how hard you tried.”

He didn’t need to go into details. They both knew just too well who he was talking about.

“If I had been a few seconds quicker ...”

“You still couldn’t have saved her. It wasn’t your fault.”

Chekov looked away, unwilling or unable to meet his gaze any longer. “I think I’d better go to bed ... the Captain said that he will have the people from beta shift take over.”

Hikaru didn’t believe that anyone of them would be able to find sleep that night, but he could understand Chekov’s desire to be alone. Maybe it would help. Maybe ...

“Ensign,” he called after him, not sure of what to say, but feeling like he should at least say _something_. A few words of consolation, maybe ... After all, Chekov was still a child, although he acted like a much older person. In a way, Hikaru felt responsible for him. They were part of the same team now, right?

Chekov didn’t stop. “It’s Pavel,” he said without looking back and disappeared into the turbolift.

~°~

The next morning, they had their breakfast at the same table, mostly because the rest of their colleagues from alpha shift were still asleep and because the only other persons in the room were a few ill-tempered officers from Security neither of them wanted to mess up with. They ate in silence, exchanging only the most necessary words. They simply didn’t need to talk; they both knew how the other one felt, they knew all about the sleepless night and the feelings of failure, and that was enough.

When Pavel had finished his meal, Hikaru watched him leave – and a sudden thought crossed his mind, nearly making him smile. Everyone aboard a starship needed one or two good friends; and when looking for a friend, Pavel Chekov didn’t seem to be a bad choice.

~°~

They did become friends in the end, of course, and Hikaru never regretted it. It turned out that working with a brilliant Russian kid wasn’t nearly as bad as he’d feared. Said brilliant Russian kid managed to wriggle his way into Hikaru’s heart so easily that it would have been scary if it hadn’t felt so right.

“I always wanted to have a sister. Or a brother,” Pavel admitted one day, after a particularly unpleasant mission had reminded all of them of the importance of family.

Hikaru couldn’t help himself – he smiled. How is it that people tend to be blind to most of the good things in their lives?

“Lucky you,” he said. “Seems like you’ve found one.”

It took a moment for the meaning of his words to sink in – but as soon as Pavel got the message, the dazzling smile that spread across his face was worth the waiting. It made him look years younger, and it made him look so ridiculously adorable that Hikaru felt his heart clench up. If anyone ever hurt Pavel Chekov, they’d have to pay for it. Big brothers knew no mercy.

And that’s when Hikaru silently vowed to protect this kid with his life.

**Author's Note:**

> Since I’m not a native speaker, this story might contain some mistakes. If you spot any, feel free to let me know!


End file.
